When Neal Gets Bored
by Lady Mage
Summary: Neal comes up with an elaborate plot to hook up Kel and Dom. What he doesn't know won't hurt him though: Kel and Dom are already together and are concealing it from him!
1. A Letter from Milord

**When Neal Gets Bored**

**Chapter One: A Letter from Milord**

_One summer after Lady Knight, Neal gets bored and decides to hook up Dom and Kel. Hilarity ensues when Dom and Kel are already hooked up and conceal it from Neal…_

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Sir Nealan of Queenscove was bored.

He was not bored in the traditional sense of the word, where one pines and whines while staring out the window. No, he was much more bored than that. It was almost as if the entire country of Tortall had conspired to make him bored. The peace with Scanra had been signed a month ago. Kel had come into the infirmary looking happy that morning, so he couldn't tease her about her Yamani face. Roald and Shinko had gotten married and off out of reach on their honeymoon. His wife, Yukimi was off in the Yamani Islands to gather furniture for their new home. (_Could anything be more boring than that? _He thought to himself at the notion of his lovely wife going on errands.) There was nothing to do!

The boredom had been amounting for a while now, but it was today that it had reached an unbearable height with the heat. The crops were in the fields and nothing could be done yet save sit around and stay indoors out of the sun. Curse the Gods, Neal had not known it could get so damned hot up north. It was the fault of the altitude, he supposed, together with the high summer sun. Everyone was cross and bored, and with the heat, everyone was lazing around and getting mad at each other.

But the worst of it had come in that morning with the nastiest of Neal's problems in the infirmary being a bloody nose. A bloody nose that was barely even bloody! Now that was the outside of outrageous for a man who'd spent his life fixing people's broken limbs and torn muscles.

But what could he do? He could start a party, but no one was really in the mood. He could bug Merric, but something told Neal that _he_ would probably get a bloody nose for his pains, and a _real _one at that. He paced around the infirmary, banging the walls until someone on the other side shouted for him to shut up. Obviously _that_ wasn't an option anymore, so now what?

Neal decided to read his mail, or, rather, Kel's mail that she had left behind earlier when she had come to see him. It is a mark of how terribly bored he was indeed that he picked up a missive from my lord Wyldon of Cavall and began reading. The letter was addressed to Kel and began relating details of military strategy and nonsense that he had no patience with and already knew besides.

About to set the letter down and go begin composing poetry in honor of the latrine (or something equally as dire, such as the ugliest of the kitchen help) Neal spotted his cousin Dom's name amid instructions in Wyldon's letter to Kel. _Domitan of Masbolle and his men will be staying at New Hope for the summer to help survey the area and to ensure that the remnants of Scanran skirmishes are gone..._read the letter.

Neal sat bolt upright. This was the perfect solution! He would bet all the furniture that Yuki was bringing home that Dom fancied and/or was in love with Kel. And, quite frankly, somewhere in the back of his mind he had an idea that Kel liked Dom.

Well, if she didn't like Dom, she would soon! Neal sat back, enjoying his sense of purpose. Kel and Dom just didn't know what was coming to them.

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**A/N: This story was actually a submission for a scenario in 'What Would Kel Do' but I felt that it's possibilities couldn't be covered within the scope of the What Would Kel Do boundaries. **

**I hope you all enjoy and leave lots of nice and juicy REVIEWS! Like I've said before, they sure do speed the writing process.**

**Lady Mage**


	2. The Plot is Set in Motion

**When Neal Gets Bored**

**Chapter Two: The Plot Set in Motion**

_Neal comes up with an elaborate plot to hook up Kel and Dom. What he doesn't know won't hurt him though: Kel and Dom are already together and are concealing it from him!_

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Now given a mission, Neal paced down the hallways of New Hope purposefully after hanging a 'gone fishing' sign on the door to the infirmary. Thing was, people would probably believe it too… well, that is, people who didn't know how Neal had hated fishing ever since Dom had proved better at it than him.

First things first: he had to get Dom rooms next to Kel. That way they would be constantly running in to each other to the entertainment of everyone else, namely him. The tension between the two, Neal gloated, would be thick enough to cut with a knife.

Neal headed towards the clerk's office to guarantee the rooming location. Much to his surprise Dom had already been given rooms next to Kel, apparently on her request.

"Oh ho!" Neal triumphantly cried, "I knew I was on to something!" For a moment, he did an exaggerated little victory dance before he realized that he had very little in the way of an audience, and the few who were watching him had no idea what he was talking about. That shut him right up. "Pardon, honorable clerks," he said, bowing, before he was chased out of the room by one of the elder and more cantankerous ones.

"Fine, fine," he said moodily to himself, before remembering his mission. So round one was already taken care of. It was now time for round two: writing love poems to Dom (from Kel, forged in her own writing, of course) to hide on Dom's pillow and in various places around his room. Neal enjoyed a sadistic pleasure writing some of them, and his favorite went as follows:

_Dommie dear darling_

_O Dommie oh mine_

_Dommie dear darling_

_You are truly so fine._

_Dommie dear darling_

_So handsome, so brave_

_Dommie dear darling_

_It is you I crave._

_Dommie dear darling_

_Lips like a rose _

_Dommie dear darling_

_I love when we coze._

Neal wrote two more verses to that particular poem and put his pen down. He wasn't quite sure about the 'lips like arose' line; it almost seemed more fitted towards his Yuki. But he wouldn't stop at anything to complete his mission. Dom should be convinced that Kel liked him, and _then _maybe Dom would finally do something about it. He'd been cursed blind for so long.

_Face it Neal, _said his inner voice which sounded suspiciously like Yuki, _you just want to make fun of them once they are together, don't you!_

"Nonsense," he replied out loud in his haughtiest manner. "I am a sincere person concerned for the welfare of my friend and cousin. And if they happen to get together, well, then… I _might_ tease them a little!"

One of the village children looked oddly at the now mumbling Neal. "Did you catch any fish then, Sir Neal?" the child asked.

Neal shook his head. "No, not today," he said, smiling. "Maybe tomorrow though."

The child nodded and scampered off, Neal looking fondly on. The children in New Hope were just so well behaved! He could really see why Kel loved them so much. Although, they could be a bit obnoxious when coming in for healings…

Enough was enough! The whole plot to set up Kel and Dom was to give him something to do! Keep his mind off the direr problems of life, like boredom! He needed to focus.

Dom was arriving in two days: it really was time to get in the game.

Yes, he had started, but he really would have to step up the program if he was going to claim any credit for the results.

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**A/N: Thank you so much to those who reviewed last time- you are all wonderful! And to those new to this story, I hope you enjoyed it and will leave a REVIEW. And if you didn't enjoy it, please REVIEW as well so I know what I can improve.**

**See you tommorrow with the third chapter,**

**Lady Mage**


	3. Dom Arrives

**When Neal Gets Bored**

**Chapter Three: Dom arrives**

_Neal comes up with an elaborate plot to hook up Kel and Dom. What he doesn't know won't hurt him though: Kel and Dom are already together and are concealing it from him!_

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A day later Neal lay relaxing by the riverbank, contemplating about what would happen when Dom arrived. Neal was sure that Kel would be thrown into a tizzy, if it could be called that, but he wasn't quite sure how Dom would react to seeing Kel again. He would either flirt with her outrageously as normal or he would completely ignore her.

Neal needed to have a plan either way. If Dom kept flirting with Kel, Neal would drop all sorts of unsubtle hints forcing the two to face their feelings. But what on earth would he do if the two just ignored each other? While unlikely, it _could_ happen, and Neal wanted to go in prepared. He knew from his Grandfather Emery that everything would go wrong once the 'war' begun. Not that it was a war; Neal just liked to strategize.

Perhaps he could lock them in a room or something or fabricate a report forcing the two of them to go off together to accomplish a mission? No, he couldn't send them off together… Kel needed to stay at New Hope unless something extremely dire happened. But maybe the room idea was a good one?

A fish flopped in the river next to Neal and he shivered remembering the time Dom had put a three day old tuna in his bed while he was sleeping. Neal had smelled so bad when he got up that morning- his mother nearly had fainted! _He_ had, that was for sure.

Shaking his head, he gathered up his things and set off back towards the walls of New Hope. It was safe now to walk outside the walls, but as always, dinner called, and he could not remain away from the dinner table long. Today he would be joining Kel in the mess which meant that he would have to eat vegetables. He frowned. Well, the positives outweighed the negatives… the food was always warmer when eaten in the mess, and there was always more of it. And, if he had to eat a few vegetables, oh well. He could use his time badgering Kel about Dom.

Speaking of Dom, what was that sound off in the distance?

Neal spurred Magewhisper to go faster to see who or what was coming. Was it Dom or was it an attack party? No, it was Dom, a day early.

_Damn! _He thought, _I haven't planted the poetry yet! And now I suppose I have to greet him, do I? Blast and double blast!_

"Hail, cousin!" Neal said, outwardly appearing to chivalrously greet Dom, bowing dramatically as per usual. Inwardly, he was cursing and spitting his cousin for arriving early.

Dom nodded his head, too weary to do anything else. It looked like Dom had killed himself to get to New Hope earlier, and Dom's men snickered, seeming to prove the point. They seemed to have more energy than Dom. Perhaps they had been pranking him along the way? Things might not be so bad after all. A pranked Dom was a Dom more open to his feelings about Kel.

Neal ushered them in through the gates, proclaiming loudly about the defenses on the way; pointing out the guards posted and how efficient they were, and so forth, until Dom interrupted, "What if I secretly am invading?" he asked, effectively shutting Neal up for a moment or two.

He found his voice again when they arrived at the doors to the mess. "Wait here," he commanded, entering before them to begin making an announcement. He then decided better of it, figuring that it would be more intimate if Dom approached Kel to tell her that he was back. He motioned the members of the Third Company to flow in quietly to the room. Apparently this was impossible for a certain Bernice Corsmond to do, who tripped over one of the more grumpy ex-convicts.

And elbow fight ensued. "Stop!" Neal shouted, pulling the men apart from each other. He healed a black eye on Bernice and a hurt funny bone on the ex-convict (against the ex-convicts' will, but then again, that was a healer's prerogative). By the time the whole scene was patched up, he had missed the whole interchange between Kel and Dom, and the two were now sitting innocently side by side conversing about something that looked relatively innocuous.

Neal snarled at the men who had observed Kel and Dom's exchange. They knew something he didn't, and there was no way he liked it like that. Plus, from the looks of the men, the interaction had been interesting to say the least. Why, some of Dom's men were still leering at him, a sure sign that something out of the ordinary had occurred.

Ah well, he would make sure to bug them both that night, and the next day, he would go fishing again.

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**A/N: Neal is hilarious, isn't he? I hope he was more in charachter there. Thank you so much to all who have reviewed: it is much appreciated I promise you!!! To those readers of this chapter, I hope you REVIEW as well to tell me what you think!**

**I will be updating Monday or Tuesday, depending on how many chapters I get done tonight. Remember, REVIEWS speed up the writing process!!!**

**Lady Mage**


	4. Sergeant Blue Eyes

**When Neal Gets Bored**

**Chapter Four: Sergeant Blue Eyes**

A/N: This chapter is dedicated to all my wonderful reviewers! The response to the last chapter was amazing- I kept getting the alerts in my inbox and they made me so happy! Keep it up!

_Neal comes up with an elaborate plot to hook up Kel and Dom. What he doesn't know won't hurt him though: Kel and Dom are already together and are concealing it from him!_

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After dinner, Neal took his time in wandering around to Kel's rooms. He stopped to tell several people who'd seen his sign that he hadn't caught any fish yet, thank you very much, but would definitely tell _them _before he told anybody else. Then, he was called in to heal a boy of heat-stroke and ended up having to transport the boy to the infirmary (where it was cooler) before beginning work. When that was over, there was a lengthy letter from Yuki marked '_Urgent'_ that really was not so urgent at all: just detailing her furniture purchases and asking his opinion. She had probably marked it urgent so he would read it at all. But, he reminded himself as he sat down to write a response to her, he must not be critical of his lovely Yamani flower.

So, it was almost two hours later that he finally made his way over to the floor he shared with Kel, Merric, a few others, and, for the rest of the summer, Dom. Pausing at Kel's door, he thought he heard voices within. But it was only Kel and Merric discussing patrol schedules. Bummer and double bummer. Where was the interesting conversation he hoped to overhear? Where was the burning love and desire?

He moved to listen at Dom's door, but the door was thrown open the instant he leaned against it. "Why hello, Meathead," Dom greeted him.

Neal swatted his cousin. "Hello too, Sergeant Blue Eyes."

"Excuse me?" Dom appeared to be at a loss for words, and Wolset, who Neal discovered to be in the room behind Dom, snickered.

Neal did his best not to flush. "It's what Loey calls you," he hastily made up. Truth be told, it was what Kel called Dom behind his back.

Wolset apparently decided then that it was time for him to enter the conversation, "Say, Dom, isn't that what Kel calls you?" he asked cheekily.

Dom cocked an eyebrow at Neal. "Loey, hmm?" he asked, "Since when do you spent time with Loey?"

"Why, all the time," Neal said, trying his best to appear nonchalant and utterly failing. He really would have to start spending lots of time with Loey to confirm the statement. Otherwise he would be made a fool of forever in front of Dom. That would really never do. Perhaps he would take her fishing with him the next day? That was it! Although… he mused, there was the slight problem that he had no intention of going fishing in the first place.

Dom grunted, and Wolset sniggered again, leaving Neal to wonder exactly what kind of conversation had been going on before he had entered. Maybe he would go bug Kel now. Still, he couldn't just leave such an opportunity hanging.

He would try one more time. "So Kel's looking lovely, is she not?" he asked, with an almost wink in Dom's direction.

Dom snorted, "You're married, Neal."

"I know, but still!" _Thank Mithros Yuki isn't here to whap me upside the head for saying this, _he thought to himself, "Isn't she looking good?"

Dom rolled his eyes, "Yes Neal, Kel is looking lovely," he said, "It probably has something to do with all the vegetables she eats too!"

Neal mock-pouted. Why did people always have to bring up vegetables when they were around them? He would lead a perfectly sane life without the pesky green things, he was sure. But no! People just _had _to make references to string beans or avacado and his perfect day was ruined. He threw his hands up in the air. Dom was impossible.

It was time to bug Kel.

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Kel proved equally impossible. She was whistling as she laid out her nightdress (Neal hadn't even known she wore a nightdress… but quite frankly he didn't really dwell on what his best friend slept in) and wouldn't hear a sad word from him about vegetables.

He just couldn't figure out why she was so blasted happy!

Usually she concealed her feelings behind a thin Yamani mask. They were usually visible, but not _this _visible! If she was _this _happy and still had her mask on to some degree, then she must be even happier than she looked, if that was even possible. But what on earth-?

Then, he had an idea. Dom was here, so of course Kel would be happy! This proved that she was in love with Dom!

HA!

Neal barely restrained himself from doing another of his impromptu victory dances and succeeded, albeit barely. Kel looked at him oddly, "What on earth is wrong, Meathead?" she asked, her whistling abandoned. That shut Neal right up. How he hated being called Meathead!! It was the bane of his existence, along with vegetables! Still, there were more important things, mainly getting Kel to _admit_ her feelings for Dom. Now, that would be the tricky part. How should he approach it? Should he just confront her with it? Yes, that would be the best way.

"You are in love with Dom," he stated as calmly as he could, completely stilling his legs which wanted to be bouncing up and down in anticipation.

"Yes," Kel said quietly, smiling the broadest he had ever seen her smile.

"What? REALLY??? Oh, I **knew** it!!!!" Neal crowed, this time doing a real victory dance. He do-si-doed with Kel and swung her around by the elbow before accidentally knocking himself against a wall.

He sobered up real quick after that. He needed a new strategy. Stage one of Program Romeo and Juliet had been completed. Now for stage two. He needed to get serious now. Most of all, he needed an accomplice.

Tomorrow he would go fishing with Loey.

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**A/N: I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Again, thank you to all those who reviewed last time! Please tell me what you thought in a REVIEW... don't be too nice... I really don't mind flames if you provide a reason you didn't like the chapter. If you liked it, even better! Just don't forget to REVIEW and let me know!**

**See you tomorrow with the fifth chapter,**

**Lady Mage**


	5. In Pursuit of Loey

**When Neal Gets Bored**

**Chapter Five: In Pursuit of Loey**

Dedication: This chapter is dedicated to abyssgirl for her invaluable help in my work.

_Neal comes up with an elaborate plot to hook up Kel and Dom. What he doesn't know won't hurt him though: Kel and Dom are already together and are concealing it from him!_

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Neal rolled out of bed as soon as the sun was up. How he loved the morning! Especially when he had a task before him that he enjoyed. Donning his breeches Neal whistled the tune he had made up to go with the 'Dommie Dear Darling' poem he had written. He snickered at the thought of future plots involving himself, Dom, Kel, and his new accomplice (though she didn't know it yet) Loey.

Today was the day he was going to ask her to be his accomplice. Neal ran fast through breakfast, healing those with injuries quickly at his table before running to the infirmary and hanging the 'gone fishing' sign up again. After everything was accomplished to his satisfaction, he straightened his tunic, ran his hand through his hair several times, and went off in search of Loey.

The search was harder than he expected: when he asked her parents where she was, they said she had just left for the stables to see Tobe. Neal then ran quickly over to the stables, nodding at his good luck in 'finding' her so quickly, only to be told by Tobe that she had left about three minutes previously for the training fields. Kel ran the class longer than usual: she was teaching the children a complicated move, and while Neal appreciated the sentiment, he was becoming increasingly impatient. He waited as calmly as he could for the class to be over so he could corner her, but then she disappeared again into the crowd.

"Do you know where Loey is?" he asked her friend Gydo.

"She just went to the latrine, I think," Gydo replied, before going off to find her brother Meech. He went to the nearest latrine, hoping to see Loey at last, only to overhear that she had just left and gone to the infirmary.

_About time! _he thought. He had been chasing her for over two hours now!

However, when he got back to the infirmary, he found a long line of people waiting to be healed. _Great, when I finally find something to do, all the people show up, _he thought, before chiding himself to be nicer to the patients. He took down the sign and set back to work.

When the last girl with a broken arm was sent away smiling, Neal collapsed on the sofa, taking a short nap. Healing took a lot out of him, and he was virtually drained. Upon awaking, he was about to go get lunch from the mess hall when Tobe popped in and said that he had just seen Loey heading down to the river in search of him.

"Thanks Tobe," Neal said smiling tiredly.

Tobe bowed and left the room to attend to some other duties, and Neal set off towards the stream, hoping against hope that she would be there and not in some other god-forsaken place.

To his relief, she _was_ by the stream when he arrived, sitting in the same spot he had been sitting in the previous day. She was calmly casting out her line and reeling it back in. Every now and then she would toss a fish up on to a large pile on the bank, and he would shiver.

"It's strange you haven't caught any yet," she said innocently to him without out turning around.

"Loey," he said with a warning tone of voice._ Don't 'fish' where you aren't wanted. My hatred of the pisces species stays with __me!_

"I heard you were looking for me," she said, still not even turning to look at him. Neal was left wondering how she knew it was him.

"Yes," Neal said, coming over to sit next to her on the riverbank, carefully out of the way of her fish pile.

"So you need an accomplice then?" she asked nonchalantly, but Neal wasn't deceived. He knew from his own experience with nonchalantness that she was probably bursting with excitement inside.

"No, I need a fish! Of course I need-" suddenly Neal was struck with something odd. How on earth did she know he needed an accomplice? The girl was just uncanny! "How did you know that?" he demanded.

"I have my ways," Loey said, doing her best to sound mysterious and sounding awfully a lot like him in the process.

He frowned.

"Oh fine," she said, "My friends said you were looking for me, so I took some time to see what you've been doing these last couple of days."

"You've been talking to Baron Cooper!"

"And if I have?"

Neal spluttered, then decided it wasn't in his best interests to blow up. "I'm sorry. It doesn't matter. I need you to help me set Dom and Kel up."

Loey snickered, and Neal came perilously close to the edge of the river (and the nasty fishes in it) in his frustration with her. Pulling back at the last minute, he asked her as calmly as he could why she was snickering.

"Just thinking about how we can claim all the credit," she said.

"So your answer is yes then?"

"Okay, I suppose…" she winked at him and he pretended to overreact to her noncommittal answer.

"What do you mean, 'I _suppose'_? What kind of answer is that?"

"Heck yes!" she affirmed, this time with more excitement, her blue eyes twinkling.

Hoorah! She'd agreed! Now it was time to plan. "Ready to make their lives hell- I mean wonderful?" he asked.

She gave him a wicked smile. Her games with him were now over, he could tell, and she was back to being the simple yet devious northern child she usually was.

Let the fun begin!

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**A/N: Don't you just LOVE Loey? I do! ****Please tell me what you thought in a REVIEW!!!! Like always, lots of reviews make me UPDATE faster and INSPIRE me to write more.**

**So yeah, REVIEW, and I'll see all you wonderful people tomorrow with chapter six!**

**Lady Mage**


	6. Devious Minds

**When Neal Gets Bored**

**Chapter Six: Devious Minds**

Dedication: I'd like to dedicate this chapter to wAstxd1sYmPhOny for her help in rewriting the summary and genuine support of my work. THANK YOU! The new summary will appear within the next couple of days.

_Neal comes up with an elaborate plot to hook up Kel and Dom. What he doesn't know won't hurt him though: Kel and Dom are already together and are concealing it from him!_

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Three hours later, Neal and Loey sat back in the infirmary sipping lemonades they'd obtained with some difficulty from the mess, and Neal patted himself on the back for a job well done. They had raced all over New Hope talking to people and getting them to drop hints to Kel and Dom. Loey had even spoken to some of the newer members of the third company. They had only approached the newer members because the older and more battle-hardened ones had seen Dom's wrath and hadn't wanted to be on the opposite end of it.

"Do you really think Dom will hear the poems even though we dropped them in Wolset's quarters?" Loey asked. She hadn't liked that particular plan and had thought that they should have put them in Dom's pockets, set to fall out whenever he walked somewhere.

Neal snickered, eyes twinkling. "How could Dom not hear the poems from Wolset? He'll probably be hearing them for the rest of his life this way: I assure you that it will all work out perfectly. Wolset loves to tease Dom."

Loey grunted noncommittally, not buying it. "I still think your poetry was a bit over the top."

"The lines will get their attention, especially the 'Dommie Dear Darling' ones." Neal was so sure of himself. He could do no wrong. By the Gods, he'd set out to do something nice for his friends, and do it he would. And if he made their lives a little uncomfortable in the mean time, then so be it.

Loey, on the other hand, seemed to have doubts with the poem strategy. "True, but what if it doesn't work? What if Dom thinks it's a joke or something? What if he thinks it's a joke from Kel and she's not serious?"

"Hmm," Neal thought, "You have a point." Why did she have to burst his bubble?

"Now what we need," Loey said, before trailing off into thought. "I'm not sure- would that work? I don't really know. On the one hand- well, they'd be together, right? But what if it is a flop and they decide that they just want to be friends? Or what if she gets furious with our attempts and sets us on latrine duty for the rest of our lives? Or…" she babbled off to herself and Neal was left staring. And he had thought _he _was a babbler! He'd just met his match: this twelve year old girl was much better at it than him.

He listened to her go on for a while before becoming impatient. "What?" he asked, pounding the arms of his chair to get her attention.

"Oh, simple," she said, returning to the here-and-now, "We hold a ball."

"A ball?"

"You know, as in a big dance? That's what Tobe says it's called anyways. He would know right, since he goes with Lady Kel everywhere? Unless he was teasing me, that is, in which case he's not very nice!" Loey frowned, a cute little wrinkle in between her eyebrows.

"No, he was telling the truth; don't worry! A ball is basically a big fancy dance where everyone gets really dressed up." Neal confirmed, chuckling at the little girl's expression.

"Do you think it would work?" Loey still looked like she had doubts.

Neal thought a little, then thought some more. It wasn't that bad of an idea. In fact, it was bloody fantastically brilliant! He hadn't attended a good ball in quite some time… not since Yuki went away at least. Although that was maybe why they weren't good; because she wasn't there. For a moment he was set off into fantasies about his wonderful wife before he called himself back to the problems of the moment.

How on earth were they going to get Kel to agree to it? He voiced as much, "I definitely think you are on to something there, but how on earth are we going to get Kel to agree?"

Loey frowned. "That _is _the problem," she agreed, before lapsing off into thought for a bit. Neal looked on appreciatively: the girl was a genius! In fact, if she ever wanted to come to Corus, why, he would sponsor her at the royal university!

She held up her hand for his attention. "What if we don't tell her until all the planning is done? My friend Galden is one of Kel's new clerks, and I bet he could set it all up!"

Neal choked on his lemonade, and set it down carelessly on the nearby table before leaping to his feet and beginning to pace. "Are you serious?" he nearly shouted, "How can you not tell Kel? She'll have to go to it anyways, and she'll be furious with us!" Still, there were possibilities with the idea… in his mind's eye, he could just see her radiant face as she entered on Dom's arm. Then he saw himself coming up to them and teasing the pair…. No, Loey's idea was not so bad after all. In fact…

"I think it will work," he said carefully, "But mind you, I had nothing to do with it if she asks! Nothing, do you hear?"

Loey nodded and crossed her fingers. Neal could tell that she had no intention of keeping that particular promise. He had suspected as much. "Oh fine," he said, pretending to be grumpy, "You don't have to promise. Equal blame."

"You do the latrine duties she'll assign when she finds out, and I'll talk to Galden," she bargained.

Neal winced, but he couldn't say no. "You have a devious mind, young one."

Kel wouldn't mind _too_ much would she?

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**A/N: I hope you liked it! The next chapter coming sometime before this weekend (it's not finished yet, so I'm not sure how long it will take me) should involve Kel and Dom's POV. So you finally find out what their big secret is!**

**REVIEWS will speed up this writing process, so please, please please don't forget to tell me what you think!**

**Lady Mage**


	7. Do They Know?

**When Neal Gets Bored**

**Chapter Seven: Do They Know?**

Dedication: This chapter is dedicated to all my patient readers. I'm sorry you had to wait so long and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

_Neal comes up with an elaborate plot to hook up Kel and Dom. What he doesn't know won't hurt him though: Kel and Dom are already together and are concealing it from him!_

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Kel was genuinely and completely confused. The moment Dom had arrived at New Hope everyone had started making hints about a relationship between them. Fanche had even said something, which was surprising.

_How had they found out? Fortunately no one except some of the third company saw us kissing at dinner when he came… that elbow fight was Providence! But how then? Had Wolset blabbed? _Kel was pretty sure he had, until Dom had assured her with kisses that Wolset liked knowing something that no one else knew. Kel had kept quiet about it after that, but she wouldn't mind being consoled like _that _again!

The warm tingly feeling she always felt at the thought of Dom returned and the next several moments were spent rejoicing in their relationship. The best part of it really, was that no one knew besides Raoul and Wolset (who'd walked in on them). She imagined that several of the members of the Third Company guessed though. No one guessed that they were actually engaged though!

Another thing: what was Neal's problem? When she had gone in to see him that one day, he had been moping, and since then, he had been on a rampage! As to what kind of rampage he was on, she had absolutely no idea. It was really most puzzling!

_It's almost like he's gone mildly insane!_

"Kel, are you in there?" Dom asked, knocking on her door, halting her thought process and analysis of Neal's actions in the last couple of days.

"Come in," she called, her heart rate speeding up.

He came in and shut the door before sweeping her up in his arms and kissing her thoroughly. "I love being able to do that anytime I want," he said into her hair. She laughed.

"Soon we won't have to hide our engagement anymore…" The thought made both smile and they were agreeably engaged for the next little while until they paused to catch their breath.

"Let's go for a walk," she suggested, "I have to drop something off in the infirmary on the way, but then we can go check out the new herb garden some of them are working on."

"Allright," Dom agreed, falling in line next to her, "What do you need to drop off?"

"Neal's stocks of bruise balm are low and I just got a new batch from Lady Alanna that was more than I asked for. I'm hoping to surprise Neal." In reality she just really wanted to snoop around the infirmary and figure out what Neal was up to.

Dom gave her a look as if he didn't quite believe what she was saying to him, but they arrived at the infirmary door and she swept in past him, giving him a mysterious look, and startling a very suspicious looking Neal and Loey from their seats. They both began to stammer out what a nice day it was and how lovely it was for Kel to come check on them. Loey was, according to Neal, his new apprentice, although what she was apprenticing in was a little unclear. Poetry? Healing? (Loey didn't have any of the Gift as far as Kel knew…) Being ridiculous? Not for the first time that day, Kel found herself wondering what the heck was going on.

Her train of thought, however, was interrupted when Dom nonchalantly walked into the infirmary and put his arm around Kel's shoulders. Loey and Neal's expressions were fascinating to watch: whereas Loey smirked, Neal's mouth dropped open before he shut it with a loud snap when Loey elbowed him.

"Hey, what was that for?" he demanded of Loey.

Loey just smirked and seemed to be communicating with Neal somehow using some sort of eye language that required frequent looks in her and Dom's directions. It was all very strange. She stood there for three minutes waiting for one of them to talk to her until, frustrated, she stamped her foot and handed Neal the bruise balm before turning on her heel and dragging Dom out the door. She _really_ didn't want to think about Neal anymore. He was just too annoying, and besides, she had more important things to attend to. Important things like walking with Dom in the gardens. A huge grin broke out on her face. What a lovely day it was for a pleasant walk in the gardens with her fiancé.

Their pleasant walk in the gardens, however, was interrupted the minute they set foot on the path by Wolset who greeted them with the words "Dommie dear darling" and a sly wink at Kel. He was gone before either could say anything, but they soon found out the rest of what appeared to be a poem extolling Dom's virtues from a wandering newer member of the third company who appeared to take great delight in extolling the wonderfulness of Dom through the 17 verses that made up what appeared to be the newest biggest hit of a poem.

They sat down on the bench after escaping the young poetry declaimer, and Dom buried his head in his hands. Kel didn't blame him… the poem was bad enough but they kept looking at her like she was the one who had written it!

**AS IF!**

She, Keladry of Mindelan and New Hope would _never_ stoop to call her fiancé 'Dommie'. It was purely demeaning. She might call him handsome, for surely he was that… grinning, she kissed him before having an idea.

"Hey Dom?"

"Yes love?" he reached for her again, but she pulled away, knowing that if she succumbed to the kiss that would be the end of all reason for at least another 30 minutes.

"That poetry sounded an awful lot like Neal's…"

"Oh?" Dom suddenly sat up straight on the bench with an evil smile on his face.

"_Oh, yes_…"


End file.
